What is Freemasonry?

Definition

The online dictionary describes a Freemason as being 'A member of the Free and Accepted Masons, an international fraternal and charitable organization with secret rites and signs.' Generally speaking Freemasonry does not refer to itself as a 'secret society' but rather 'a society with secrets'. Freemasons across the world, of which there are an estimated 6 million or more, are regulated by a number of different bodies. One of the largest is Grand Lodge in England but even bigger ones exist in the United States.

What Happens in Freemasonry?

Freemasons meet in groups, known as 'Lodges', which generally gather together in often specifically created buildings known as 'Temples' or 'Halls'. In order to become a full Freemason a candidate has to undergo three specific ceremonies, known as degrees. These are 'Entered Apprentic', 'Fellowcraft' and 'Master Mason'. In various branches of Freemasonry there are many other degrees that a Mason can take but these are only accessible to a Master Mason.

All the degrees of Freemasonry contain elements of ritual and specific words, some of which are considered to be secret but all of which can be discovered by a brief look at the internet. Clothing and symbols of various sorts add to the 'theatre' of Freemasonry but outside the 'Temple' where the ceremonies take place, Freemasons spend a great deal of their time raising money for charities of one sort or another, and most lodges also eat communally and hold social functions. So obscure and strange are some of the ceremonies of Freemasonry that many members remain fairly ignorant about what it all means. My friend and colleague Christopher Knight, co-writer of 'The Hiram Key', was no exception. It was his curiosity regarding Freemasonry that encouraged him to look deeper into the Craft to try and discover what really lay at its heart.

What do Freemasons Believe

We will be going into this topic more specifically once we deal with the charges levelled against Freemasonry but generally speaking it is likely that Freemasons almost certainly believe as many diverse things as all the other people in the world. What they definitely have to hold in common is the only religious prerequisite necessary to become a Freemason. They can be of any colour or creed but they have to accept the existance of what they refer to as 'The Great or Grand Architect of the Universe'. In other words, at one level or another they must believe in God - though no gender is specified and although in some forms of Freemasonry the term is generally held to represent the God of Judeo/Christianity, there is nothing at base to indicate that this is the case.

Degrees, Symbols and Ritual

Once again, we will go deeper into this in the pages that follow. However, in American Scottish Rite Freemasonry, which is one of the most popular branches of the Craft in the world, there are a total of 33 possible degrees that can be attained by member Freemasons. Each carries its own symbols, stories, clothing and rituals. At one time candidates were expected to memorise all the ritual, though this is less likely to be so now and in any case aspirants can often achieve several degrees at the same time. Despite the fact that much Masonic language and ritual is archaic in form, not all of it is ancient - and in any case there are those who suggest that Freemasonry only goes back to the start of the 18th century. Freemasonic ritual and many of the symbols developed in the 19th century and in many cases an early 18th century Freemason would probably not recognise all that much of what goes on these days.